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360 Camera Advice Please!
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Last week, I nearly got hit by a car doing an illegal u-turn into the bike lane. I reported it to the police and the lady said that she was turning left (bullsh!t) and that I was speeding (I was under the speed limit and bikes I found out talking to the police don't have a speed limit, which surprised me) and that I shouldn't have been on the road any way (what a selfish person (expletive removed)).

Today, I filed TWO police reports during my ride. The first was a pickup truck who yelled at one cyclist, threw something at me while I was riding downhill at 37 mph and nearly knocked me over and threw ice at another cyclist and then a couple hours later, someone didn't stop at a red light and turned right in front of me as I was coming through the intersection with the green light.

I'm sick of this!

I need to get a 360 camera and I can't find one. Here is what I need:

1. 4 hour+ battery - this really is the only requirement and the one I can't seem to find.

2. true 360 recording so that I can get all angles no matter what happens from any direction - it will be recorded

3. some sort of water resistance and dust resistance would help

4. resolution that is not fuzzy. I don't need the best resolution, I just need enough resolution to catch a license plate number at say 20 feet away after blowing up the video at home and taking a closer look at the license plate. Every run in with a car has always at some point put the offending vehicle's license plate within 5 feet of me at some point and so I say 20 feet just to be cautious.

5. something that doesn't break the bank.

Does any camera out there on the market fit my needs? I have looked around but can't figure it out.

Thanks.

2018 Races: IM Santa Rosa, Vineman Monte Rio, Lake Tahoe 70.3
Last edited by: Sanrafaeltri: Sep 2, 17 17:24
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Re: 360 Camera Advice Please! [Sanrafaeltri] [ In reply to ]
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Come back in 5 years. Then one will exist.
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Re: 360 Camera Advice Please! [nickwhite] [ In reply to ]
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nickwhite wrote:
Come back in 5 years. Then one will exist.

If I'm still alive (emoji for confused and frightened)

2018 Races: IM Santa Rosa, Vineman Monte Rio, Lake Tahoe 70.3
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Re: 360 Camera Advice Please! [Sanrafaeltri] [ In reply to ]
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Garmin Virb 360

Robert Driskell
Certified Master Body Geometry fit Technician
Certified Master Retul Fit Technician
Zipp Service Course Specialist
Bikes Plus Pensacola Florida
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Re: 360 Camera Advice Please! [Robert Driskell] [ In reply to ]
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The battery time on the Garmin VIRB is one hour and 5 minutes.

2018 Races: IM Santa Rosa, Vineman Monte Rio, Lake Tahoe 70.3
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Re: 360 Camera Advice Please! [Sanrafaeltri] [ In reply to ]
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As others have noted, the VIRB 360 is the best 360* camera for the buck out there (quality/app/features-wise, before you start talking super-high end rigs), and fits into cycling well.

The battery life is the challenge though. Certainly you could have it just powered, but that's wonky cables to deal with on the bike, likely going to your helmet if you want to truly capture all angles.


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My tiny little slice of the internets: dcrainmaker.com
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Re: 360 Camera Advice Please! [Sanrafaeltri] [ In reply to ]
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1. Most action camera usage doesn't require 4 hrs of battery life. It's easier to stop and change the battery during activities other than cycling. Four hours of battery life requires a much larger, more expensive, and heavier battery. Manufacturers will probably increase camera FPS and resolution and thus power consumption to keep pace with improvements in battery capacity. That being said, I think the Virb 360 has some unused contacts in its base that may be used for an elegant external power solution in the future.

2. You may want to get a separate front and rear camera. There's only one semi-affordable 360 degree camera on the market now and I believe it's just two cameras back-to-back with very wide angle lenses.

4. The wider the lens angle, the harder it is to make out license plates. The increased resolution of 4K over 1080p helps here. Still, you would not believe how hard it is to make out license plates due to wide angle lenses and high compression rates.

Front and rear GoPro Session 5s with the aftermarket extended battery might work. GoPro is kind of sucky right now but the Session 5s might be OK.
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Re: 360 Camera Advice Please! [Sausagetail] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks for the great info

2018 Races: IM Santa Rosa, Vineman Monte Rio, Lake Tahoe 70.3
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